US gives $50,000 for quake-hit Italy

The United States said on Tuesday it would donate $50,000 in emergency aid to Italy after a powerful earthquake killed at least 150 people.

worldUpdated: Apr 07, 2009 08:10 IST

AFP

The United States said on Tuesday it would donate USD 50,000 in emergency aid to Italy after a powerful earthquake killed at least 100 people.

"We send our heartfelt condolences to the families of those killed in the earthquake. Our embassy in Rome will provide 50,000 (dollars) in emergency relief funding," State Department spokesman Robert Wood told reporters.

Italian authorities told the United States they did not need rescue teams, Wood said. President Barack Obama earlier offered his condolences on a visit to Turkey and voiced hope that the United States could send rescuers.

The earthquake killed at least 150 people and injured 1,500 more as it reduced medieval buildings to rubble in the central town of L'Aquila. Wood said there were no reports of US citizens among the dead or injured but that the US embassy in Rome was reaching out to Americans living in the region.